AIDS Foundation raises awareness with public art

Chicago, IL —
The AIDS Foundation of Chicago has collaborated with organizers in the Austin neighborhood on Chicago's West Side to create a mural that raises public awareness of sexually transmitted diseases.

A rendering of the AIDS awarenes mural credit :: aids foundation of chicago

The 15-by-30 foot artwork at the northeast corner of Chicago and Mayfield avenues is called "Austin is Doing Something" and is part of a new memorial garden to honor longtime activists Ed Baily and Leola Spann.

The mural, designed by Pilsen artist Carla Carr, was a collaborative effort with the AIDS Foundation of Chicago and was inspired by AFC's "With me comes a cure" city-wide campaign launched last year.

"We just didn't want to have a campaign; we wanted it to be a movement. If we had some artistic expression such as a mural, it would get people thinking about a cure," AFC spokesman Johnathon Briggs told the Chicago Tribune.

The AIDS Foundation helped fund the project which cost about $9,000.

According to data from the Chicago Department of Health, the Austin neighborhood has the highest number of STD cases among youth ages 13-24 and the second-highest number of HIV infections among that age group.